tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53428011967013878942024-03-13T23:30:26.350-05:00HL ArledgeLeadership Coach, Team Doctor — and author of "Lead, Follow, or Get Fired: 9 Steps to Unstoppable Teams"HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.comBlogger329125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-27737279749934470002012-03-09T15:34:00.000-06:002012-04-01T22:28:09.442-05:00Lead, Follow, or Get Fired! eBook released<h5><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007Q4DSZW" target="_blank"><img border="0" hspace="10" alt="View HL Arledge at Amazon" align="right" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-4xXcyy2Fkv4/T3e1eUeY7ZI/AAAAAAAAAns/CiXRx19EeHo/s388/9Steps_white.png"></a></h5> <p>On March 9, the Kindle version of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007Q4DSZW">Lead, Follow, or Get Fired: 9 Steps to Unstoppable Teams</a> was officially released. The first print edition is expected in early summer.</p> <p>My goal with this book was to help executives everywhere identify failed managers and consultants and provide them the tools to trace the cause of problems, to show them how to identify processes and people that actually work and dump the rest.</p> <p>As the Amazon blurb says...</p> <blockquote> <p>Whether you’re working with the executive board of a mega-corporation in Boston, a construction crew in Southern New Mexico, or with your extended family at the movies, on every team, there are leaders, followers, and those who would be more productive somewhere else. This book will provide tools to identify failed leaders, dysfunctional followers, and the rotten apples on your team.</p></blockquote> <p>This book will show leaders, step-by-step, how to transform teams into those that are self-improving and constantly evolving—a group of cross-functional experts so focused on goals and culture that team members do not tolerate failed processes or people of any kind.</p> <p>Check out <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007Q4DSZW">the book</a> and tell me what you think. The beauty of Kindle book is the fact that I can update the book in real time, based on reader input, and you'll get the update instantly, free of charge.</p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-38734667614148477382012-01-07T12:13:00.001-06:002012-04-01T01:56:12.273-05:00Scrum’s no silver bullet. It’s the holster!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ken_Schwaber" target="_blank"> Ken Schwaber</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Sutherland" target="_blank">Jeff Sutherland</a>, the creators of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrum_(development)" target="_blank">Scrum</a>, describe it as a lightweight framework designed to address complex problems in an adaptive manner, while creatively delivering products of the highest value. I like to say Scrum is common sense. They say that it is simple to understand, but extremely difficult to master. I say the “extremely difficult to master part” could point to a team or organization’s lack of common sense or their willingness to acknowledge weaknesses.<br />
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You’ve heard too often that Scrum is no magic bullet. Folks says that for the same reason they say Scrum is difficult to master. Scrum is a process framework designed to manage complex product development, but it can’t do the work for you. Think of this framework as a tool, better yet, a bicycle. Climb on a bicycle. You can ride across country, but the bicycle isn’t motorized. You still have to apply muscle to get you where you need to go. Climb on the bike backwards, and you’ll find it “extremely difficult to master”, but peddle properly, and you’ll find yourself moving forward.<br />
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The <a href="http://www.scrum.org/scrumbut" target="_blank">Scrumbuts</a> out there would take the chain off the bicycle and tell everyone Scrum didn’t work for them. <br />
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Scrum works by exposing the deficiencies of your management and development practices so that you can improve. It is not a silver bullet because it is not a process or a technique for building products. Scrum is the holster for those bullets, a framework of rules and processes to manage the other tools and techniques you employ. Within this holster, you’ll organize your Scrum Teams and their associated roles, events, and components. <br />
Each tool within your holster serves a specific purpose and is essential to your success with Scrum. If you discard one of these tools, you have <a href="http://blogs.msdn.com/b/ericgu/archive/2006/10/13/scrumbut.aspx" target="_blank">Scrumbut</a>. However, your holster is large and accommodating. You can add all of the additional bullets or tools you need. Used properly, your holster binds each together by monitoring and managing the relationships and interactions between them.</div>HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-73751497913721742862011-11-27T11:32:00.001-06:002012-04-01T01:56:38.642-05:00What kind of oracle do you have?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I’m not talking about hoodoo mysticism or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_matrix" target="_blank">the Matrix</a>, and the reference has nothing to do with your database. I mean someone that mentors you, your coach, or as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/" target="_blank">Wikipedia</a> defines oracle: <em><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oracle" target="_blank">a person or agency considered to be a source of wise counsel</a>.</em> <br />
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If you think you are such a good manager or team leader that you don’t need one, that’s the same as saying you have nothing else to learn. When you have nothing else to learn, you are obsolete. Everyone needs a sounding board, a listener or reviewer who helps us confirm we’re on the right track, not full or ourselves, or worse: full of crap. <br />
<br />
Who do you have coaching you? Hopefully, it is your manager. If not, then perhaps it is a friend or colleague. The important thing is that you’re not floating in the middle of Decision Sea alone, but if you are, relax. I’ve got good news for you.<br />
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Finding mentors and getting input is easier in the 21st century than ever before. Texting, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skype" target="_blank">Skype</a>, forums, blogs with interactive commenting, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linkedin" target="_blank">LinkedIn</a> Groups, and even <a href="http://www.facebook.com/HLArledgeAuthor" target="_blank">Facebook</a> are tools readily available for communicating with existing coaches or finding new ones.<br />
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You’re back at the office tomorrow. Here’s your goal for the week: seek coaching by Friday. Engage in a conversation that helps you move forward. Even if you have no pending decisions, seek second opinions on last week’s decisions. Ask someone to hear you out and provide feedback. Quite often, just hearing yourself recount a decision or path out loud shines lights on new options.<br />
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Try this out this week, and let me know how it works for you.</div>HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-32262882181224855802011-10-30T13:06:00.000-05:002012-03-31T15:24:07.948-05:00What is a Perpetual Team?Do you recall hearing of “perpetual motion” or “perpetual motion machines”? <br />
Perpetual Motion generally refers to any closed system that produces more energy than it consumes.<br />
When the industrial age was in it’s infancy, several inventors attempted to create “perpetual motion machines”—devices that completely eliminated friction and maintain motion forever through mass inertia.<br />
It was an interesting idea, but unfortunately, the laws of physics made their success impossible.<br />
However—lucky for us—the laws of physics have no effect on the creation of Perpetual Teams.<br />
Think of your team as a machine, where each member is a moving part, constantly pushing the other moving parts forward. As long as each part continues to push the other forward, the whole of the parts will produce more energy than was consumed.<br />
If each team member is constantly pushing the other towards a goal—routinely asking: what can we do to deliver better, faster—then two or more heads will not only be better than one. They will be better than teams triple their size.<br />
Of course, there is one caveat…<br />
When one of those parts stops working, that part must be replaced, before the corrosion contaminates the other parts.<br />
I know that sounds harsh, but it is a reality. <br />
To believe anything else is to fool yourself and damage the morale—and the throughput—of your team.<br />
This is not to say that a part cannot be repaired. The team itself should work to oil and adjust its parts to keep them from failing, and the mechanic—the manager—shouldn't be called until such repairs are beyond the abilities of the team.<br />
Everything starts with a truly motivated, self-managed team.<br />
Successful teams lead <em>themselves</em>, and within each team, there are strong members that will push for improvements. <br />
However, those leaders must not be allowed to dominate, as one persons improvement is often another persons impediment.<br />
You must have strong leaders that counter other strong leaders, ensuring the team is always moving forward and weighing options based on everyone's input, in order to find the optimal solutions to all problems.<br />
Any who sees a problem with current processes should lead the team to improve it, just as they would any other problem.<br />
If a member cannot identify a problem with current processes, it is that member's responsibility to support those processes—continuing to move forward and to push other members to move forward.<br />
Those old tried-and-true words of <a href="http://www.quotedb.com/quotes/1738" target="_blank">Thomas Paine</a> are still alive and well today: "Lead, follow, or get out of the way" of those who are trying to improve and/or support the team. <br />
Yea, I know what you are thinking—and you are wrong.<br />
There is <em>nothing</em> negative about this perspective for two simple reasons:<br />
<ul>
<li>REASON ONE: The process is a fair one. Everyone has the opportunity to support the team as is or help change the team and its processes for the better. Finding a team where you are a better fit is truly a last resort. </li>
<li>REASON TWO: The process has proven time and time again that it works! </li>
</ul>
Here’s something else to keep in mind. If you can build one Perpetual Team, you can build many. Just as one member can push another member forward, one team can push another team forward—creating a Perpetual Organization—an organization that produces five times more than it consumes.<br />
You’ve heard consultants babble on about company’s crossing the chasm from good to great? The only way you’ll really do that is with Perpetual Teams.HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-68075862453275193792011-10-02T13:14:00.000-05:002011-11-27T17:01:49.045-06:00Perpetual Teams deliver PerfectionThe Japanese word Shibumi translates roughly to "effortless perfection", but this is not the definition of Shibumi as much as it is the goal of Shibumi.<br />
Shibumi is an ancient discipline that disallows stress when obstacles appear—“Worrying is a sin”, grandmother used to say.<br />
Students of Shibumi inspect problems, then improvise and adapt to the best solution presented. If a better solution presents itself later, the students inspect, then adapt again. This cycle continues until one reaches the infinite goal of effortless perfection.<br />
For years, I have described what I termed "The Perpetual Team" and considered this methodology to be my own, but Japanese artists and Jujitsu masters have been teaching the fundamentals of this philosophy for centuries.<br />
If an idea works, you stick with it.<br />
On the Perpetual Team, office politics and the blame game are non-existent. Team-members are committed to the same goals, enabling each member to hold themselves—and each other—accountable for missteps. Each admits mistakes and weaknesses immediately in order to get team advice and address problems by leveraging the collective wisdom of the team.<br />
For a team to achieve Shibumi, they must become Perpetual Teams.<br />Members of Perpetual Teams push each other to deliver on their commitments. Members are constantly inspecting team makeup and processes, diligently asking, "What can we do to deliver better, faster?"<br />Like the disciples of Shibumi, Perpetual Teams are constantly identifying inefficiencies and adapting to improve.<br />
If you are reading this and thinking that Shibumi actually translates to "pie in the sky", then you have much to learn about the potential of Perpetual Teams in an organization or even in a family.<br />
If everyone on a team is truly committed to the goal, that team can move mountains.<br />
Commitment happens when team meeting attendance actually synergizes team members.<br />
This synergy manifests when goals are clear and prioritized, and when everyone on the team trusts everyone else to do their best to achieve those goals.<br />
This kind of trust develops when the team believes that everyone else—management included—is being truthful about motives, goals, and obstacles as they arise.<br />
Establishing transparency throughout the team is the key to fostering truthfulness. Everyone must clearly see who is doing what, where, and when, and what problems have or may arise. Teams with fewer than a dozen members achieve transparency with little effort, but dividing larger teams into multiple Perpetual Teams works just as well, if the goals of each team support the goals of the organization.<br />
To ensure this support, Leaders form Perpetual Teams of their own. Just as each member of a team pushes the other to reach the goal, leaders of teams can push other leaders, driving the organization to reach the organizational goal.<br />
The trust introduced by transparency solidifies when leaders stop punishing teams for missteps and learn to improvise, working with teams to find solutions that correct mistakes and to define processes that prevent those mistakes from reoccurring. As Akio Morito, co-founder of Sony Corporation, once said, “Don't be afraid to make mistakes, but make sure you don't make the same mistake twice.”<br />Does Shibumi translate to “Pie in the Sky”?<br />
At Decade Software, the Perpetual Team concept originated in the Development Department, and then spread to the Design Team and Customer Service. Our company tripled production and elevated quality to the fourth power in less than two years. Where we once released a product annually, today we release new features eight times per year, and we release every product upgrade with zero known defects—a feat previously unheard of in the software industry.<br />
Seriously evaluating the rewards of effortless perfection, a stress-free work and home environment, together with committed trust and transparency between peers and management, another definition of Shibumi becomes clear.<br />
Shibumi is little more than “common sense”.HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-64550384303710738122009-10-01T03:37:00.000-05:002010-10-31T20:01:28.431-05:00Put your Bugs where your Mouth is<p>Last month, <a href="decadesoftware.com/" target="_blank">Decade</a> Software released <a href="http://www.envisionconnect.com/" target="_blank">EnvisionConnect</a> 4.0—and what a proud day it was.</p> <p>The new version is the previous version on steroids, and were constantly making strides to improve performance and make the product easier before version 4.1—always focusing on making the application faster for users to get in and out and still feel good about having got the job done.</p> <p>My Development Team prides itself in maintaining a <em>zero defect average</em>. Every 30 days—during <a href="http://scrumforteamsystem.com/ProcessGuidance/Process/TheSprint.html" target="_blank"><a href="http://scrumforteamsystem.com/processguidance/v2/Process/SprintPlanning.aspx" target="_blank">Sprint planning</a>—</a>we commit to closing every open defect in addition to delivering any new features we committed to providing.</p> <p>Speaking to software shops across the nation, I have not found one who has been able to come anywhere near our zero defect average. (If you know of any, please let me know. I would love to glorify them in this blog!)</p> <p> I recapped all of the above so that you understand my dismay at hearing someone say this week…</p> <blockquote> <p>“One of our clients says he doesn’t like the Page Layout Editor”—<em>Yes, we do allow users to redesign forms and pages</em>—”because the user says the tool is buggy.”</p></blockquote> <p>Immediately, I searched the defect tracking system and consulted my <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quality_assurance" target="_blank">Quality Assurance</a> team. I wanted to find out how many bugs constituted “buggy” and why we had not eradicated those bugs.</p> <p>I found no bugs related to the feature in question, aside from a couple we had fixed but not yet released.</p> <p>Then I knew our problems lay somewhere else.</p> <p>Is the problem related to the definition: What is a defect? </p> <p>Not likely. At <a href="http://www.decadesoftware.com/" target="_blank">Decade Software</a>, We have the most lax description in the industry: If the client is “bugged” by something, that’s logged as a defect. Ultimately, we may fix it as a defect in code, or by adding a new feature, or by changing a design, or by providing training for the user—but no defect is ever ignored with the words… </p> <blockquote> <p>“…that’s just the way it is.”</p></blockquote> <p>So, if the code is not the problem, and the definition is not the problem, then there’s only one thing it can be. Someone found a defect and did not report it.</p> <p>Even the best software teams cannot fix bugs no one has found. It is the responsibility of user—internally and externally—to report <em>any</em> problem found.</p> <p>Software shops can’t make you happy, unless they know what is making you sad.</p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-24200228391613780942009-09-25T14:34:00.000-05:002010-10-31T20:03:00.464-05:00Hands-on Workshop at Decade User Training Conference<p>The Decade Software Training Conference 2009 will be one for the record books.</p> <p> In addition to providing training based on a user-prioritized list, we'll host a hands-on lab throughout the conference—no appointment necessary. If you have questions or just want to test a part of EnvisionConnect you've never used before, this open lab is the place for you. What's more, if you have questions the lab team can't answer, you're not likely to hear, "We'll get back to you on that." or "Can you call tech support after the conference?" Instead, a Conference Concierge will be on call to track down whomever on our staff has the answers you need.</p> <p>There will also be sneak peeks at the future of EnvisionConnect and the Environmental Health industry from a technology perspective. We'll be presenting awards for best user-authored reports, page layouts, and SQL scripts, and we'll be introducing you to our online and interactive support tools. Our goal in the year ahead is to ensure that you never have to ask why and if you ask how, you'll get answers ASAP.</p> <p><b>Want to know more?</b> <i>Join us at the <a href="http://decadesoftware.net/conference.html">Decade Software 2009 Training Conference</a>, October 19th and 20th.</i></p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-48753640262721343762009-09-24T14:25:00.000-05:002010-10-28T08:56:31.896-05:00EnvisionConnect Batch Processing Faster than Envision<p>Customers and conference attendees have told us time and time again that financial batch processing in Envision was the fastest in the industry. EnvisionConnect, they also reported, is much easier to use, but not very fast compared to its predecessor. Decade's Development Team took that as a challenge, and early trials have everyone buzzing.</p> <p>Smart Client Technology—the key to working on the web without giving up a powerful user interface—provides that all is processed client-side, including batches. Envision's advantage in the batch realm was its good old-fashioned client-server technology. Batches processed on the server run fast. The challenge in EnvisionConnect was to move the batch processing back to the server side without sacrificing the intuitive interface EnvisionConnect customers have grown accustomed to.</p> <p>Through exhaustive research, careful prototyping, and much discussion with EnvisionConnect users, the Development Team provided a solution to a problem.</p> <p>Perform Aging and Penalization and Perform Permit Billing are, by far, the most powerful of Decade's batch processes. From day one, EnvisionConnect was developed with a "hard things first" mentality.</p> <p>Developers stayed the course with the batches, converting these two batches to server-side processing before all others, and in side by side trials—same data, same configuration, same hardware—these two EnvisionConnect batches now smoke the Envision batches, and they run in a fraction of the time it took the client-side batches to run.</p> <p>In fact, Perform Permit Billing now processes half a million records in under one hour!</p> <p><b>Want to know more?</b> <i>Join us at the <a href="http://decadesoftware.net/conference.html">Decade Software 2009 Training Conference</a>, October 19th and 20th.</i></p><br /><br/>HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-7318230311405914092009-09-23T14:31:00.000-05:002010-10-28T08:56:31.885-05:00EnvisionConnect Speaks SWIS-DIP<p>California's Solid Waste Information System's Digital Inspection Project (SWIS-DIP) is described this way...</p> <blockquote> <p>The Solid Waste Information System Digital Inspections Program (<a href="http://www.ciwmb.ca.gov/swis/DIP/" target="_blank">SWIS-DIP</a>) provides an easy, electronic way to submit statutorily mandated inspection reports. Using SWISDIP reduces waste and paperwork and improves the accuracy and consistency of your reports. Inspections may be submitted using the SWIS-DIP fill-in web form or with XML web services.</p> </blockquote> <p>That sounds as close to an "Easy" button as you can get, but Decade Software has been working with the state to provide an Easy button on steroids. This fall, EnvisionConnect provides round trip data integration with SWIS-DIP.</p> <p><b>Want to know more?</b> <i>Join us at the <a href="http://decadesoftware.net/conference.html">Decade Software 2009 Training Conference</a>, October 19th and 20th.</i></p><br /><br/>HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-48995995679013791852009-08-20T02:55:00.000-05:002010-10-31T20:04:04.101-05:00Hiking to Success at Decade Software<p>My wife and I took a few vacation days and hiked to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hollywood_Sign" target="_blank">Hollywood Sign</a>, but even the hot sun and aching muscles couldn’t keep my mind off the office.</p> <p> We’ve got so much going on: business is booming, our biggest release ever is just around the conference, we’re hiring in every department, and our training conference is two months away. <a href="http://www.decadesoftware.com/" target="_blank">Decade Software</a> is truly a company on the brink of jumping from <a href="http://blogs.decadesoftware.com/hlarledge/2009/01/if-its-worth-doing-its-worth-doing-great.html" target="_blank">good to great</a>.</p> <p>That said, I ask myself how we got here.</p> <p>We got here, the same way a middle-aged overweight man made it to the top of the Hollywood Sign. We navigated the obstacles, the heat, the pitfalls with pure adrenalin and a little something called <a href="http://blogs.decadesoftware.com/hlarledge/2007/07/there-is-an-i-i.html" target="_blank">teamwork</a>.</p> <p><a href="decadesoftware.com/" target="_blank">Decade</a> Software has conquered it’s Hollywood Sign. Now, we’re ready to tackle <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Capitan" target="_blank">El Capitan</a>.</p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-41713182817061056352009-08-07T12:21:00.000-05:002010-10-31T20:04:37.258-05:00Collaborate, support teamwork, or go home!<p>In <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/02/business/02corner.html?_r=1&th&emc=th" target="_blank">an interview this week with John Chambers, CEO of CISCO</a>, they asked him what has changed in business in the last few years. His answer was dead on…</p> <blockquote> <p> “Big time, the importance of collaboration. Big time, people who have teamwork skills, and their use of technology. </p> <p>Today’s world requires a different leadership style — more collaboration and teamwork, including using Web 2.0 technologies. If you had told me I’d be video blogging and blogging, I would have said, no way. And yet our 20-something's in the company really pushed me to use that more.</p> <p>If they’re not collaborative, if they aren’t naturally inclined toward collaboration and teamwork, if they are uncomfortable with using technology to make that happen both within our company and in their own life, they’re probably not going to fit in here.”</p></blockquote> <p>That is exactly how I feel about my team.</p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-46044363228910613382009-08-06T02:58:00.000-05:002010-10-31T20:05:20.182-05:00Customer design or Too Many Cooks Sink Ships<p>When designers attempt to please everyone, someone always ends up angry. The key to good design is bringing all interested parties together in order to balance interests and find solutions that work for everyone.</p> <p>In the early days of <a href="http://www.envisionconnect.com/" target="_blank">EnvisionConnect</a>, customer advocates on staff shouted:</p> <blockquote> <p>“Our users know what they need better than anyone else. Let them design the software and force the developers to deliver exactly as they define.”</p></blockquote> <p>Who could argue with that philosophy? The customer knows best, right?</p> <p>Let’s return to the mixed metaphor of “Too many cooks sink ships,” and let me tell you a story…</p> <blockquote> <p> There once was a shipbuilder who hired the best engineers, but he sold ships to the government and was forced by contract to design the ship according to specs put together by a government committee.</p> <p>The shipbuilder ordered the designers to build every gadget and widget the government committee could dream up, and the ship that evolved from the process was beautiful! </p> <p>On this ship, you didn’t have to take the stairs to go from deck to deck. Everything in the ship was put on one easily accessible deck. And all of the gadgets, widgets, bells, and whistles glistened. It was the most spectacular-looking ship the government committee had ever seen.</p> <p>When war broke, the government ordered the ship launched. It would sail to the other side of the globe and squash the evil doers.</p> <p>Unfortunately, the ship was too heavy. It moved too slow. By the time the ship reached the enemy, the war was over. That’s not all that bad really. If every country followed this design model, the world would be a more peaceful place.</p></blockquote> <p>The moral of the story is that<em> all</em> interested parties have to be involved in design.</p> <p>Luckily for us, the world of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agile_software_development" target="_blank">Agile</a> software design doesn’t work like ship building. </p> <p>We do insist that users of the software design by committee on the first pass (in industry jargon, <em>the first iteration</em>) but then it’s up to the engineers to weigh the needs of the many against the wants of the few and refine (industry jargon again, <em>refactor</em>) the product into that happy medium that makes everyone happy.</p> <p>This year, our customers will notice that we’re changing the way we collect customer feedback—finding ways to extract information faster without wasting customer time, and our developers are defining “the how” and restricting customers to defining “the what”. And when some “what” is ultimately detrimental to a more important “what”, it’s our job to help customers understand the trade-off they are asking to make.</p> <p>Now, you know why it’s taking a while to christen EnvisionConnect 4.0. </p> <p>EnvisionConnect 4.0 as she stands today is the most beautiful and the most powerful ship in the fleet, <em>but</em> Envision outruns her. As goals go, our next BIG target is making EnvisionConnect faster, even if it means dropping a few bells and whistles overboard.</p> <p>Watch this space to see how we do.</p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-33800858590566507992009-08-03T02:21:00.000-05:002010-10-31T20:05:52.850-05:00Did you miss me?<p>With all of this tweeting and twittering going on, you would think blogging would be losing popularity, but seldom does a week go by that someone doesn’t ask about my blog.</p> <p>That said, I’m committing to blogging at least three days a week from now on.</p> <p>…but I owe you an explanation, as to why I haven’t been doing so.</p> <p>Because of the wild success of <a href="http://www.envisionconnect.com/" target="_blank">EnvisionConnect</a>—due largely to the success of my own team—we’re really, really busy these days.</p> <p>Presently, I am assisting with the launch of an all-new <a href="http://www.decadesoftware.com/" target="_blank">Decade Software</a> user community, planning our 2009 training conference, and governing the launch of EnvisionConnect 4.0—our most anticipated release ever.</p> <p>We’ll look at the details as the weeks progress, but in the meantime, I’m begging for your patience. I’m a really busy guy.</p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-9989200957493099792009-06-11T02:28:00.000-05:002010-10-31T20:07:03.385-05:00What Managers Expect from teams<p>Larry Bossidy’s article,“<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000P0JM4K?ie=UTF8&tag=smartlemming-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B000P0JM4K">What Your Leader Expects of You</a>,” provides a thoughtful and thorough list of what managers’ expect from the members of their teams.</p> <p>This is that list with some of my additional thoughts here and there:</p> <ol> <li><strong>Get involved</strong>: Bossidy says, “Good managers know when to delegate…but more importantly, they know when to get involved.” I say, “Good managers <a href="http://blogs.decadesoftware.com/hlarledge/2007/07/there-is-an-i-i.html" target="_blank">trust</a> staff to deliver, but they also trust staff to alert management when they’ve hit a brick wall or they’re stuck in quicksand. In other words, stay transparent. From a <a href="http://blogs.decadesoftware.com/hlarledge/scrum/index.html" target="_blank">Scrum</a> perspective, this means update the team, the <a href="http://scrumforteamsystem.com/ProcessGuidance/Roles/ScrumMaster.html" target="_blank">ScrumMaster</a> and the SOS Master every step of the way. <li><strong>Generate ideas</strong>: Team players should provide ideas rather than playing it safe. Don’t offer random ideas that you haven’t thought about, but ones you’ve considered and have merit. <li><strong>Be willing to collaborate</strong>: Team players sometimes work in cross-functional team where collaboration is required. <li><strong>Be willing to lead initiatives</strong>: Team players should take initiative rather than avoiding the risky projects for the sake of having a good track record. How else will direct report learn to take initiative on their own if they don’t think it’s of value? <li><strong>Develop leaders as you develop</strong>: Good Team players are leaders and teachers, constantly helping others develop. For the good of the company or for the good of the team, leaders and managers coach, mentor, and help team players to be leaders and grow into future managers. <li><strong>Stay current</strong>: There’s nothing more embarrassing than seeing anyone not know what’s going on in their own industry, the market, or with their customers. All managers should scanning and watching the environment for opportunities or competitive threats. <li><strong>Anticipate</strong>: Team players and their management should anticipate what the industry, market, competitor, or customer changes mean for the company and department. <li><strong>Drive your own growth</strong>: Team players should want to learn more and take initiative without waiting for the manager to hand out growth opportunities. Find the white spaces in your job function that allow you to learn something new or expand on existing skills. Take control of your career path within the company. <li><strong>Be a player for all seasons</strong>: Business is good. Business is down. Team players need different flavors of the same skills sets for good times and bad times. Action plans against competition when you’re the market leader can be vastly differently when you are not. Be a well-rounded player for any business circumstances. </li></ol> <p>Next, we’ll look at the other side of the coin: <em>What Teams expect from Managers</em>.</p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-32594065021722689482009-06-08T08:20:00.000-05:002010-10-31T20:07:44.617-05:00Bing! And thanks for saying so.<p>Just back from vacation, I decided to try <a href="http://www.bing.com/search?q="hl+arledge"&go=&form=QBLH" target="_blank">Bing!, the new search engine everyone’s been raving about</a>. And like everyone who tests a new search engine, I entered my own name. Doing so, I discovered a PDF from the <a href="http://www.aggressionmanagement.com/" target="_blank">Center for Aggression Management</a> entitled, <em><a href="http://www.aggressionmanagement.com/Learning_Online/Addressing_the_Loss_of_Teamwork.pdf" target="_blank">Addressing the Loss of Teamwork: Identifying, Measuring and Minimizing Trust-Destructive Behaviors</a></em><em></em>.</p> <p>The following is a quote from that essay…</p> <blockquote> <p>“HL Arledge, a leadership expert defines leadership with four “Ts”: trust, truth, team and transparency. He says <a href="http://blogs.decadesoftware.com/hlarledge/2007/07/there-is-an-i-i.html" target="_blank">Trust</a> is a cornerstone to leadership, the development of loyalty and teamwork.”</p></blockquote> <p>Real Nice.</p> <p>BTW, I also found my name on a page entitled “<a href="http://www.blogged.com/about/dalai-lama-joins/" target="_blank">Words about the Dalai-Lama</a>”, but that’s a different story.</p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-13666355743046875112009-05-26T03:35:00.000-05:002010-10-31T20:08:34.243-05:00Now, that’s a real team!<p>Friday night, Joey, one of the leaders on my team got married. </p> <p>Mike, another on our team played guitar, and Dave, a friend of ours, conducted the ceremony. My wife, Janna, said it was a beautiful reception, but men only attend such events for the reception—so I’ll skip ahead.</p> <p>Mike, Janna, and I sat at a table with folks from Joey’s father-in-law’s old neighborhood. They still keep in touch, meeting annually for a combination golf tournament and old neighborhood reunion.</p> <p> We were the only ones at the table not from the old neighborhood. We didn’t mean to crash their party, but all of the other seats were taken. More people had shown than had originally RSVP’ed.</p> <p>“Who are you?” One of them asked.</p> <p>“I work with Joey.” I replied.</p> <p>“What does HL stand for?”</p> <p>“Hard Luck.”</p> <p>“Really? That should be my name.”</p> <p>And this conversation repeated every time another from the old neighborhood joined us. However, over the music, one of the wives missed my introduction, and asked Mike, “Who is he?”</p> <p>“He’s mine and Joey’s manager.” Mike said.</p> <p>Her husband heard and said—loud enough for the whole table to hear, “Hey! HL is Joey’s boss. He said he just worked with the guy.”</p> <p>And someone else said, “Now, that’s a real team.”</p> <p>Indeed, it is.</p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-87228396376601144002009-05-12T04:05:00.000-05:002010-10-31T20:09:28.510-05:00Building a better Vulcan<p>Outside of the office, I love nostalgia, but inside, I am the first to promote change. Keep the things that work. Build on those things, and throw out the bad. </p> <p>However, when <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paramount_Pictures" target="_blank">Paramount Pictures</a> took this approach with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_trek" target="_blank">Star Trek</a>, I was afraid of the change. I did not <a href="http://blogs.decadesoftware.com/hlarledge/2007/07/there-is-an-i-i.html" target="_blank">trust</a> that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._J._Abrams" target="_blank">JJ Abrams</a> would be able to handle the job.</p> <p>This was because I was not Paramount’s <a href="http://scrumforteamsystem.com/ProcessGuidance/Roles/ProductOwner.html" target="_blank">Product Owner</a>, and their team did not ask me for buy-in, when they gathered requirements to fix something that I didn’t think was broken. </p> <p>I was wrong. The movie was great, and I learned a lesson I have been preaching to others for years…</p> <blockquote> <p>“The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.</p> <p align="right">–Mr. Spock, <em>Wrath of Khan</em>”</p></blockquote> <p>This became clear today, as I was reading new <a href="http://www.joelonsoftware.com/items/2009/03/09.html" target="_blank">words of wisdom this week from Joel “on software” Spolsky</a>…<br><br></p> <blockquote> <p>“Typically, the product owner wants something simple and easy to understand for the users, featuring a telepathic user interface and a 30" screen that nonetheless fits in your pocket, while the developer wants something that is trivial to implement in code.</p></blockquote> <blockquote> <p>Lacking a product owner, your garden-variety super-smart programmer is going to come up with a completely baffling user interface that makes perfect sense <em><strong>if you’re a Vulcan</strong></em>. The best programmers are notoriously brilliant, and …have a tendency to get attached to their first ideas, especially when they’ve already written the code.</p> <p>One of the best things a program manager can add to the software design process is a second opinion as to how things should be designed…</p> <p>….ideas for how the UI should work, which might be better, or worse, than the developer’s idea. And then there’s a long debate.” </p></blockquote> <p>For those of you that speak <a href="http://blogs.decadesoftware.com/hlarledge/scrum/index.html" target="_blank">Scrum</a>, I have substituted Joel’s use of the label “Program Manager” for “Product Owner” to point out that our objectives are the same—the common techniques that work from one software process to the next are essentially the same. Common sense is universal.</p> <p>Software Engineers know the “how” better than anyone, but the “what” must be defined by those that interact with the customer—or better, by the customer themselves. However, we can’t forget that ancient <a href="decadesoftware.com/" target="_blank">Decade</a> proverb “everyone doesn’t know what they don’t know”. That’s where the give-and-take and “happy mediums” of good design come from. </p> <p>Despite what you were taught, compromise is not a bad thing. </p> <p>In fact, its what makes good teams great. Meeting in the middle has nothing to do with losing ground. It is about <em>everyone</em> coming together to see the big picture and finding the optimal solution for all involved.</p> <p>Code long and prosper.</p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-71195537557653742002009-04-30T03:15:00.000-05:002010-10-31T20:10:11.782-05:00It’s really not Swine Flu<p>Folks, I’ve been out a few days with the flu. </p> <p>I suppose it was one of the regular flu’s and not the super-came-out-of-the-blue-hard-to-treat flu’s, as I am back at the office today. I feel a little stuffed up, and my limbs still ache, but otherwise I’m back to normal. </p> <p>Believe me, you don’t want to hear descriptions of my symptoms when I was not “back to normal”.</p> <p>Anyway, the purpose of this post is to point out something you may not have realized. This so-called “Swine Flu” is really not the traditional Swine Flu we’ve had for hundreds of years. </p> <p>This thing is a morphing of one of the traditional Swine Flu strains, a strain of one of the common strains of human flu, and the ever-popular newsmaker, bird flu.</p> <p>If I were a conspiracy theorist—which of course I am not—I’d think someone was cooking this stuff up in a lab somewhere.</p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-33784080752046127182009-04-09T08:22:00.000-05:002010-10-31T20:10:42.690-05:00Is your software safe from covert secret agents?<p><a href="http://blogs.decadesoftware.com/hlarledge/2009/04/bill-gates-joins-the-cia.html" target="_blank">I mentioned the other day</a> how <a href="http://microsoft.com" target="_blank">Microsoft</a> was working with the CIA to monitor US computer networks. </p> <p>Apparently, this <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nineteen_Eighty-Four" target="_blank">Big Brother</a> partnership was just in time. The major news networks and publications reported yesterday that <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=7287945&page=1" target="_blank">some countries are using computers to steal your electricity</a>.</p> <p>Didn’t we read this in a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Orwell" target="_blank">George Orwell</a> book, or see it in some <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Cruise" target="_blank">Tom Cruise</a> movie?</p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-55386271115919387622009-04-08T03:31:00.000-05:002010-10-31T20:11:19.843-05:00Beware the Wizard of Oz<p>Sometimes you’ll find team members or leaders pushing for something really hard—something that you struggle to understand why, because they have trouble articulating why it is important to them.</p> <p>Beware the Wizard of Oz. </p> <p>Pay attention to the man behind the curtain.</p> <p>In most cases like these, the person making the case doesn’t have all of the facts, because they are just acting as mouth-piece for another team member or members.</p> <p>The person talking can’t convince you of the importance of the issue, because they may not personally have a stake in it themselves. Their objective is simply to not let those down who coerced them into speaking on their behalf.</p> <p>Dig deeper, and you will uncover the Wizard of Oz—and maybe even a flying monkey or two.</p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-88051183491787123532009-04-06T03:37:00.000-05:002010-10-31T20:11:54.966-05:00Bill Gates joins the CIA<p>Do you remember back in ‘98 when the United States Department of Justice filed the antitrust case against <a href="http://microsoft.com" target="_blank">Microsoft</a>? The media speculated that the software monopoly would be <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell_System_divestiture" target="_blank">broken-up like Ma Bell</a> was in the ‘70s, but in the end, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_v._Microsoft" target="_blank">Microsoft got off with a slap on the wrist—and everyone wondered why</a>.</p> <p>Perhaps, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/29/technology/29spy.html?_r=2&ref=world" target="_blank">an article in the New York Times</a> last week can offer some clues…</p> <blockquote> <p> “The electronic spy game has had some real-world impact, they said. For example, they said, after an e-mail invitation was sent by the Dalai Lama’s office to a foreign diplomat, the Chinese government made a call to the diplomat discouraging a visit. And a woman working for a group making Internet contacts between Tibetan exiles and Chinese citizens was stopped by Chinese intelligence officers on her way back to Tibet, shown transcripts of her online conversations and warned to stop her political activities.”</p></blockquote> <p>The article went on to quote intelligence analysts who said that many governments and some business organizations use sophisticated computer programs to covertly gather information. This group of 103 countries, they said, includes China, Russia and the United States of America.</p> <p>The antitrust suit was settled in 2001, shortly after the attacks of 911, when much of our government’s errors were blamed on the Department of Justice’s “<a href="http://www.cnponline.org/ht/display/ContentDetails/i/389" target="_blank">antiquated computer systems</a>”.</p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-8488670214214124372009-03-31T09:06:00.000-05:002010-10-31T20:12:28.453-05:00Happy Teams will weather the crisis storms<p><a href="http://positivesharing.com/" target="_blank">Alex Kjerulf calls himself a CHO—Chief Happiness Officer</a>, and he is one of my favorite bloggers.</p> <p>He has a new book in the works that explores the economic crisis and it’s effect on happy teams. </p> <p>The book has three central claims:</p> <blockquote> <p><strong> 1: Most of what companies traditionally do in a crisis doesn’t work.</strong> <br>The way many organizations typically handle crises is by cutting back on all expenses and doing mass layoffs. While this can be necessary, studies actually show companies who choose this approach recover more slowly.</p> <p><strong>2: It is possible to be happy at work even in a workplace in trouble.</strong> <br>Of course it’s easier to be happy when everything is going swimmingly, but people can still be happy at work in a crisis. It takes determination and focus, but it can be done. Surprisingly, a crisis can make people happy at work, provided that it becomes a reason for people to focus and pull together—rather than an excuse to give up.</p> <p><strong>3: Happy workplaces get out of a crisis faster.</strong> <br>Especially in a crisis, an organization needs to get the best out of its people—and when we’re happy at work we are more motivated, creative and productive.</p></blockquote> <p>I can’t wait until the book comes out. I predict it will be a worthy read.</p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-20329488254145142732009-03-24T05:01:00.000-05:002010-10-31T20:13:22.391-05:00I never assign work to anyone<p>Although I am very good at delegating work, I never <em>assign</em> a task to anyone.</p> <p>Day to day, I prioritize my workload, and then ask myself…</p> <blockquote> <p>“Okay, which tasks can be delegated and which am I uniquely qualified to tackle?”</p></blockquote> <p> This daily decision is the key to being a good manager. </p> <p>If you are doing too much, you are saying to your team: <em>I don’t </em><a href="http://blogs.decadesoftware.com/hlarledge/2007/07/there-is-an-i-i.html" target="_blank"><em>trust</em></a><em> you to do as good a job as I will do.</em></p> <p>On the other hand, assigning work is a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Command_and_control" target="_blank">command and control</a> vessel. To “assign work to someone” is to say that their current tasks are unimportant.</p> <p>Instead, explain why you believe the team member is suited for the task, and then <em>ask</em> them to accept the task, weighing and prioritizing the task against their current workload.</p> <p>By asking someone to <em>commit </em>to a task, you are building teamwork and proving that you trust that teammate’s skills and judgment.</p> <p>When you say that you are assigning work, you are essentially saying what you parents told you as a child…</p> <blockquote> <p>“Do it, because I said so. I am the boss.”</p></blockquote> <p>Whether you realize it or not, a simple word like “assign” will lower morale and hurt your team(s) and the culture of your organization.</p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-28052669065695841922009-03-20T02:48:00.000-05:002010-10-31T20:14:04.012-05:00It’s not really Friday, is it?<p>This has been a busy week, but its the start of one of our best <a href="http://scrumforteamsystem.com/ProcessGuidance/Process/TheSprint.html" target="_blank">sprint</a>s ever.</p> <p> We are overhauling sections of our flagship software that will knock our users’ socks off, and my team is focused tighter than they have been in a long while.</p> <p>In the meantime, teams from various departments are working more closely to increase <a href="http://blogs.decadesoftware.com/hlarledge/2007/07/there-is-an-i-i.html" target="_blank">transparency</a> and provide customers with solutions faster.</p> <p>—and we’re growing! We added two team members in the last 30 days, and we are still interviewing.</p> <p>More and more potential customers are getting excited about <a href="http://www.envisionconnect.com/" target="_blank">EnvisionConnect</a>, and our newly established <em>Customer Communications Task Force</em> is getting off to a great start.</p> <p>Great week, but I’m exhausted from all of the excitement, and I’m still happy to see Friday.</p> <p>[For you youngsters out there, the photo is Sergeant <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Friday" target="_blank">Joe Friday</a>.]</p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5342801196701387894.post-65137938238355285332009-03-18T02:17:00.000-05:002010-10-31T20:14:40.832-05:00The customer is not always right<p>I’ve spoken much lately about the importance of working with the customer and creating a <a href="http://blogs.decadesoftware.com/hlarledge/2007/07/there-is-an-i-i.html" target="_blank">transparent</a> environment, where everyone knows the best ways to do everything with our software, and I’ve spoken of the importance of getting customer input on priorities and direction.</p> <p>I am one of our customers’ biggest advocates, and most of them will tell you so, but let me make this perfectly clear… The customer is <em>not</em> always right. </p> <p><a href="http://blogs.decadesoftware.com/hlarledge/2009/03/its-the-customers-stupid.html" target="_blank">As I pointed out last Friday</a>, often what one customer wants is detrimental to another. This is why it is so important that customers are allowed—no, encouraged—to share ideas, problems, and solutions with each other.</p> <p>In other words, the <em>customer</em> as an individual is not always right, but the <em>customers</em> as a group nearly always are.</p> <p>That said, check out <a href="http://positivesharing.com/2008/03/top-5-reasons-why-the-customer-is-always-right-is-wrong/" target="_blank">this article from Alexander Kjerulf</a>.</p> HL Arledgehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02208828472062891926noreply@blogger.com0